HiFiMAN Edition S

I had major Q.C. Problems with the four products I purchased from them. Returned one headphone for issues and I had to fight with them. They just sent me another headphone. The audio players were junk too. This was one of their top models back in 2014. After the warranty, all kinds of issues. Just a big piece of expensive JUNK!! Phones 560's lost a speaker on one side. Audio players: one was their mini-players and the other HM 801. This was the biggest piece of junk ever made. I think I have the model numbers right. I finally threw the players away. I still have the headphones. The players would just freeze up and stop working along with a host of other issues. Including poor battery life. The noise from the big player was real bad. The 560 headphone speaker film inside just disintegrated on one side. They did take them back after I had to jump over all the roadblocks with them. No more HIFIMAN stuff for me. I would rate HIFIMAN a big fat 0?

Hello to all Head-Fiers!

As a long-time audiophile equipment hobbyist, I probably used more than 60 headphones from different brands after 2001, ranging from open / closed to on-ears / full sized over-ears ; and from dynamics to planar magnetics. I enjoyed using lots and lots of different headphones during these 16 years.

Very much.

And I should say that HIFIMAN Edition S with its "convertibility" claim is quite unique among those.

There are quite a number of extensive reviews of this widely known headphone, so I'll try to be as brief as possible and I am going to do my best to present the readers of these lines my general impressions about this highly interesting headphone.
I will put my emphasis on describing especially the sound of Edition S, and at the end I am going to state my own rating for the headphones' overall performance and try to evaluate how much of my findings reflect HIFIMAN’s claims about Edition S.
In short, I’ll try to assess this headphones value on it’s current street price of $129 on the conditions of June 2018, after nearly two years following it’s release.

The Edition S unit was sent to me in purpose of a Turkey review tour, and following the end of the tour I believe it would be beneficial to write an additional (and fresh!) review here of these cans.

So, that’s why I’m here.
From here, I want to thank Mark from HIFIMAN for sending me a review unit of Edition S and thus making this review possible.



Burn-in & Source Equipment

Hifiman recommended a period of 100 hours for Edition S to reach its optimal performance. And I gave up to 250 hours of play intermittently, just to be sure.
Whether you find the effect of burn-in process real or only "a listeners myth", I can suggest people to take a closer look at Edition S.
Out of the box, there was some stridency in the treble section of the phones, which was open to causing a bit of a fatigue after some extended listening sessions.
After giving the headphone some play time, the upper frequencies became more relaxed.

So believe in burn-in or not, I suggest you to give a listen to the wisdom of Shia LaBeouf and :



For testing, I used various different players with Edition S like Sony ZX2, WM1A, A35, A45, Aune M1S, Fiio X3 Mark III, Hifiman's own little wonder SuperMini and half a bunch of smartphones.
I also gave a listen through Objective2 as one of my trustworthy desktop amplifiers, and that $100 amp squeezed the most from Edition S. (will talk more of this later)

And I had the chance to compare the sound performance of Edition S with headphones like Grado HF-1, PS500e, half a bunch of closed Sony headphones ranging from $150 to $2200 flagship Z1R, Meze 99 Neo and Sennheiser HD600 & 650.

Design & Build (4 stars over 5)

I find the design of Edition S highly authentic. Having a medium-sized head, the headphones take the shape of my head with its padding and distribute the clamping force quite evenly.
I never felt discomfort during my listens that sometimes lasted for some couple of hours.

Good job on that.

However, I should state that though the headband does its job decently in distributing pressure over a large area, it feels quite plasticky and of average build quality.
This is an issue HIFIMAN should address in their future designs.
On the other hand, the cups seemed to have near perfect build. The shiny gray frames in the cups are made of sturdy metal, the logo caps are decent, and the pleather pads with velour surface are very comfortable as well as being of high quality.

The covers with "H" logo can easily be taken out, and they stick well with the frame of the cups after being sealed. Shortly, they do not fall down in any case unless you want to take them off.

The cable is quite soft and doesn't look very sturdy ; but it is easily replacable (for $30) and it has volume / play - pause controls on it for Android and IOS devices.
And as another nice thing, if your digital audio player supports remotes and in-line controls, you would be able to use these buttons also for your DAP. (For example, the buttons work beautifully with Fiio X3 3rd Generation)

The outer box of Hifiman is quite a big one, whispering "hey buddy, you'll see some serious headphone inside".



In fact, Edition S looks a bit small on photos over web ; it is actually a relatively large set of headphones. (Keep in mind that the cups of Edition S houses two very large 50 mm sized drivers. I mean, how small can it be?)
The carrying box that came with Edition S is a highly minimalistic one (it doesn't even have any "Hifiman" name on it). Yet it does an excellent job in protecting the phones, and it has a very small footprint.

In the box, there is also a plane adapter, a manual, 3.5 to 6.35 mm adapter and a warranty card. Nothing unusual or lacking here.



Kudos to HIFIMAN here.

So, lets go for the sound.

Sound Signature

In terms of its sound character, Edition S is a fairly neutral headphone having a similar tonality to its pricey (and some VERY pricey!) planar siblings, despite carrying a dynamic driver.
It does not sound dark, nor bright, and it is not a very warm or a "cold sounding" headphone with a sterile feeling coming from analytical emphasis.

Edition S is none of these. (However, some may consider it to have a touch of brightness due to the slightly elevated treble).
In fact, it carries a minimum level of coloration and I believe Edition S is probably the most neutral sounding headphone I've come across in the sub-$150 category.

In terms of balance, the presentation of Edition S can be considered a relatively balanced one.
It - of course - does not carry a reference level, razor-flat frequency response at $129, having some dips and peaks in it’s portrayal of the sound spectrum, but there is no apparent compression of one frequency by another.
(Meze 99 Neo presents a flatter, more reference-like frequency response at $199, only having a slight bloom in the bass).

So far so good.

Bass (4 / 5)

Deep with decent texture and detail. And the frequencies of lows is probably the most severely affected area of the sound spectrum through shifting between open / closed use.
With logo cups off, the bass of Edition S gives the overall sound a very slight amount of warmth while retaining much of its obvious neutral character.
Also in the open mode, the bass reaches its prominency in terms of its amount.

(Like a Grado. Users of Grado cans most probably tried closing the back of the phones with their hands at least once in their lifetimes, and experience a drop in the amount of bass. This rule works also for Edition S, but not to the extent of a Grado.)

It does not extend much to sub-bass (as expected from an open-back dynamic implemetation at this price range) but it provides some nice body and a hefty midbass presence.
(In fact, with some recordings the midbass of Edition S virtually becomes the center of attention among the other frequencies in the open mode.)
The speed of the bass is average ; neither very fast & thick, nor slow & fat. However, bass of Edition S responds well to good amplification, becoming thicker and more controlled.

In open mode, I found Edition S particularly enjoyable especially with pop and electronic music.
In this mode for example (over Sony WM1A) walking in the streets of the city and listening to The Weeknd's "I feel it coming" I found myself to be unintentionally smiling in a quite silly way : )
It was pure joy.

Resolution in the low frequencies is decent, but occassionally the prevalent midbass may show some slight signs of bleed into the lower mids.
In the closed mode with logo cups on, the main difference is the decrease in the presence of the midbass. These frequencies are pulled slightly back, though still being quite present, but not prevalent and towering over other frequencies by any means.



Mids (4.5 / 5)

Nicely detailed and VERY clear (in fact I've never come across a Hifiman phone with veiled sounding mids).
A real highlight of the phone.

In the open mode, the strong presence of midbass recesses the mids very slightly. However, thanks to the increased interaction with air on that mode, the timbre of the midrange instruments became more life-like and organic.
The closed mode brings a slight boost to the midrange clarity by pulling the midbass slightly back, and causing a slight elevation in the upper mids causing some nice attack and liveliness on the portrayal of keyboards.

At the other side of the coin, the cut of air interaction slightly degrades the realism of the timbre of instuments as can be expected in closed phones.
Besides, there is a slight drop in the lower mid frequencies of the sound of Edition S which sometimes cause some instruments to sound thinner than they should normally do.
This is observable both in open and closed use, slightly more apparent in closed mode.

Treble (4 / 5)

Precise, dynamic and nicely detailed, but rolled-off at the extreme top end.

The general neutrality of the headphone continues in here. The treble performance of Edition S is very good for it’s current $129 price level.
In addition to the one’s I mentioned above, it is also quite forgiving and not very open to sounding sibilant or shrill.
Besides, coupled with it’s spacious soundstage, you can hear some lovely “air” between instruments.

However, there is a slight peak on the low to mid treble transition which sounds quite obvious before burn-in at the first listen. This “peak” smoothens through use, but it is always there to a certain degree nonetheless.
It gives the sound of Edition S a nice dynamism, yet with the trade off of a tendency to give some fatigue after long listening sessions.
In case you use Edition S with some sub-par sounding smartphones, some splashiness and an uneven decay in cymbals may occur coupled with some congestion.

Mind you, these headphones sound good even with smartphones, yes ; but they sound definitely better with proper amplification.

Soundstage & Imaging & Separation (4.5 / 5)

In the open mode, shortly put, near full-size headphone level soundstaging.
It is not there on the level of, say, a Sennheiser HD600 (of course), but it is great to have a highly portable set of cans that can present a spacious stage as Edition S.

The placement of the stage is not very close or very far. In other words, Edition S neither presents a Grado-like in-your-face presentation, nor one that is laid-back as the premium grade Sennheiser’s do.
It is like between a Grado (with standard L-Cush pads) and a Sennheiser HD700.
It has some intimacy in it’s sound, but the soundstage is also pulled slightly back to give the sound and the instruments some space “to breathe”.

Overall it has a quite wide and deep staging that creates a 3-dimensional view of musical field, both in open and closed mode. Open mode mainly adds some more width to the stage.
Thanks to the spacious soundstage, instrument separation is decent, and it becomes even better with a good source like a dedicated audio player.

Isolation (3 / 5)

Probably the weakest link in the chain.

Edition S sounds excellent for its price, is portable and stylishly designed, yet in that regard, it's more like a "semi-open" headphone rather that a fully closed one.



The magnetic logo cups provide some isolation, yes ; they cut some of the direct sound waves aiming for your ears (and plenty of music that wants to go outside), but in overall performance of blocking outside noise, it is not up to the passive isolation level of a properly closed can.
Especially if you're a person who has her usual commute passing through a really crowded & noisy city environment, a serious level of outside sounds would interfere with especially the sub frequencies of your music.

Other than that, the existence of the logo cups really helps when there is mild outside noise.
And as putting the cups on & off changes the sound Edition S produces, one can additionally use them as a manual equalizer!

Portability & Driveability (5 / 5)

I should mention that Edition S looks quite a bit smaller in its photos over web.
It is not THAT small.
Trust me.
At the end, you should now that this headphone houses two massive-for-its-class, 50 mm dynamic drivers.See below :



(As an info for comparison, Sennheiser's HD6XX models and HD700 both utilize smaller 40 mm drivers whereas it's flagship HD800 uses 53 mm ones. So the size of the drivers of Edition S is nearly equal to the size of the ones used in HD 800. Fyi.)

However, thanks to it's ergonomically designed housing, excellent foldability and relatively low weight (of 248 grams), Edition S has some very decent portability.
I found it very easy to use Edition S during commute. Sometimes Edition S makes you forget it’s existence around your neck. (Much better than Meze 99 Neo on that matter)

It's carrying box is also very handy due to its small footprint. (Check from the photos)

Edition S is a highly easy to drive headphone.
It can be driven via any source with decent juice (That also explains why it has a smartphone-friendly cable).
But keep in mind that you're actually trying to feed two little speakers (of 50 mm size).
The sound quality of Edition S is decent with smartphones, but it would probably shine and show its abilities with better source, i.e. dedicated players and amps.
It has some really good potential.

And while it sounded well out of the portable players I used in testing, it sounded best with Objective2 fed by the DAC sections of these digital players through line-out.
In fact, the people I gave for a listen with this setup (Line-out from a random DAP + Objective2 + Edition S) reacted to the sound performance of this set with a nice amount of smile on their faces!

The second best pairings had been with Sony WM1A ($1100) and HIFIMAN’s own SuperMini ($199).
(It is lovely that HIFIMAN successfully matches the sound characters of it’s DAPs and headphones ; SuperMini and Edition S duo is a lovely budget audiophile package for $330 on the go)

Conclusion

So, what should the verdict of this review be?

I believe, despite its some shortcomings, Edition S is a highly innovative piece of engineering, and an excellent sonic performer at $129.
On the other hand, contrary to HIFIMAN's claims, you do not go from an open headphone to a “really closed" one with the switch of a pair of cups, no.

With logo cups, it becomes a semi-open headphone at best, cutting some outside noise that would distract you from enjoying your favourite songs, (and that may bother people around you with your music), but it is nowhere around the isolation of a properly sealed passive isolating cans.
But the isolation and the blocking of incoming / outgoing sounds you gain is definitely much better than nothing. Besides, I think cups also give the headphones quite a fancy look, in addition to working as an "analogue equalizer" for the sound Edition S produces.

In terms of sound, there are also some nicely detailed performers in this price range, but I believe Edition S is the most neutral sounding piece while still being a very detailed guy at it's current price of $129.
(As an example, Meze 99 Neo produces an overall better, more refined and punchy sound at $199, but it’s portability is nowhere near the one’s of Edition S).

And despite it’s giant drivers, Edition S took 5/5 on portability department from me, as being one of the best of it’s class.
In it's initial retail price of $249 of two years ago, it would be a pretty tough choice, but now at it's street price of $129, in terms of it's looks, portability, performance and features, I can easily recommend Hifiman Edition S to music lovers.

6.22.2018

Have you ever wondered what type of headphones you need on the go? Tired of bringing oversized headphones wherever you go? Well if you got a large spending budget for on the go headphones. The HiFiman Edition S Headphones are definitely for you. Not enough information? Well it's about time I got to that.

Introduction: The HiFiman Edition S is an interesting set of headphones from years of engineering from HiFiman. The sole purpose of the Edition S is to provide high quality audio. While maintaining the portable size and with decent durability as well. Is it what it's meant to be? I'll explain that further as I analyze further into detail.

Build Quality/Design: The Edition S is made out of a tough plastic. Even though the headband is made out of hard plastic. It would be better if it were thicker and reinforced by metal. At the headband, it seems that the plastic is quite rigid. There are L and R markers on each side of the bottom headband. Below the headband is the metal housing, with the magnetic grills and the covers to keep it in open back or closed back modes. There's also a removable cable port on the left side of the headphone. The Edition S can be folded and stored in the Silver Headphone carrying case that is provided with the Edition S.



Fit: It's best to have flat hair. Having too much high hair doesn't do the fit any justice. It makes it harder to wear. As for comfort. I can wear this for hours with little to no fatigue because of the soft inner ear pads. It only gets hot in the ear pads when I'm running. I sweat a lot. So this may slightly differ with everyone else.





Isolation: Low to low-end Moderate. Not ideal for very noisy environments. Such as crowded trains and subways and Large social gatherings. This is for closed back mode. Open back mode is a no go. It's low isolation at best.
Source: OPUS #1 (EQ: OFF) (GAIN: MIDDLE) (VOLUME: 124/150)

Specifications:

• Style: Open/Closed Back
• Frequency Response: 15Hz-22kHz
• Sensitivity: 113 dB
• Impedance: 18 ohms
• Weight: 8.74oz (248g)

Easy to drive?

Yes. With the 18 Ohm impedance and very powerful OPUS #1. It was quite easy. As for my ZTE Axon 7. Kind of. My Axon 7 isn't quite ideal for this analysis anyway.

Sound Characteristics:

We'll start with two separate modes because of their noticeable differences in sound characteristics.

Closed Back Mode:

Bass - There is enough quantity for Pop and Trap music. The interesting observation is that the midbass is limited on closed back mode. Although it's not quite deep. Based on my observations. The deepest Bass I heard from the Edition S on Closed Back Mode was 60 Hz. Although despite the semi deep Bass. The quality is very good. It sounds consistent and feels punchy. With a slight warm tilt. Along with decent slam and quick speed.

Mids - Due to the limited midbass. The lower Mids aren't overshadowed. So the female vocals aren't subdued. They aren't too forward either. I'd say they are inbetween. Moving up to the upper Mids. There's a slight upward tilt. Making it sound brighter with male vocals, most percussion instruments, brass and strings. Surprisingly, it doesn't sound artificial in anyway. The Mids aren't recessed in Closed Back Mode. It's strange how it differs from Open Back Mode.

Treble - I find the treble to be presented as slightly bright. Most of the time, the treble can liven things up. The sharpness of this frequency makes it a bit analytical in bass light soundtracks. Such as MDK's "Shinespark (Evan King Orchestral).The timbre is quite natural in that soundtrack and has no hint of artificial tonality in any way. Generally, the treble is refined and a bit sharp. Not ear pinching sharp.

Soundstage: It's average for an on-ear/over-ear headphones. The soundscape is pretty airy, despite the average soundstage. It's probably due to the somewhat energetic treble. The width is above average and the depth is a bit shallow. That all changed with Open Back Mode.

Accuracy/Imaging - Before I get to Open Back Mode. I should point out that the imaging and accuracy is impressive for a portable headphone like this. The accuracy is quite good. With the oval shaped soundstage. The placement of the instruments and vocals are distinguishable. Which makes the music quite easy to follow. The imaging is quite vivid and three dimensional sound. Which does make the music really pop out at you. That and along with the accuracy makes the Edition S an experience that makes your music come to life.

Open Back Mode:

Bass - This is a bit different. It's warmer. Much warmer. The bass seems to have a softer and slightly slower slam. The texture seems to be a deep layer of smooth clay, being trounced by a bouncing bowling ball. In other words. The bass feels and slams smoothly. Almost silky smooth. This is most likely the boosted mid bass. I find it very good for Trance, Dubstep and even Acid Music. What intrigues me is, how did the mid bass get a boost? I'm still figuring that out. Maybe the panels were acting as a dampening effect?

Mids - This part is a somewhat different than closed back mode. Continuing from the bass, Mids also sound warm. The lower vocals are slightly recessed. This is due to the enhanced midbass. So the female vocals are darker and the clarity seems to reduced a tiny bit. The upper Mids have been darkened a bit too. At this mode. It's perfect, for me at least. The problem is that the deets for the mid-range in general has taken a bit of a back seat. So this means that open back mode is not ideal to hear the distinguished details of the mid-range. Although it does sound more organic and musical than Closed Back mode. So it's more of a trade-off of sorts. Although this is because I prefer the reference type sound of Closed Back.

Treble - This part of the frequency is so smooth and a bit dark. Making the whole frequency average out to mostly neutral. The details aren't distinguished either. They are there. Just not obvious like in Closed Back Mode. Once again. This frequency also sounds organic and isn't recessed like the Mids. Instead it's balanced. One thing I noticed is the air. It pumps more air in open back mode. Probably with the help of the vents. So this prevents the music from sounding too dark and boring.

Soundstage - Due to the combination of the smooth and airy treble. Along with the vents, the soundstage almost doubles in size. It's more like 1.4x bigger. So yeah. The width is well above average. The depth is average and the soundstage is easily above average. The shape of the soundstage becomes more circular shaped. Yet still remains oval shaped. Pretty much like an enlarged oval.

Accuracy/Imaging - This part becomes a bit obscure. It depends on what you are listening to. If you are listening to bassier tracks, the placement of the cues can get a bit smeared. So the soundtrack will sound a bit jumbled. Slightly harder to follow, yet still very listenable. With light bass soundtracks, the sonic cues are still easy to read and it becomes quite a fascinating sound to experience. Like for example. Robert Miles soundtrack "Children (Dream Version) has a decent amount of bass, yet it's not smeared or jumbled up and the sonic cues are easy to follow. Despite all of this. The imaging is very much three dimensional and can be dynamic with soundtracks that demand for it.

Overall Sound Characteristics:

Closed Back - Neutral, Reference-Like and Energetic.

Open Back Mode - Musical, Emotional and Smooth.

Conclusion: I have enjoyed listening to the Edition S for the past 9 months. I'm glad I purchased it after testing it out at the Stereo Exchange last June. This seems to be the headphones for everyone. Although if you have too much hair. The fit may be an issue. Then if you go to noisy areas daily, then you won't find these enjoyable. Or if you want Closed Back Mode with the sound characteristics of Open Back Mode. You may not find this your cup of tea. Otherwise if none of those bother you, then go nuts.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01D...ds=hifiman&dpPl=1&dpID=41ncyM-nRML&ref=plSrch